local gardening and food source

leeks

Mashed celery root is one of life’s culinary pleasures. And it’s good for you.

I first discovered celery root when I was trying to limit the amount of starches I eat. I have never looked back. It is, simply, one of the best foods on the planet. I eat it many ways, but mashed celery roots is a definite favorite.

To humor me, Rick planted celery root in our garden. Neither of us had any idea how to grow it, but that didn’t deter us. I had visions of mashed celery root and celery root fries dancing in my head. It did very well, which kind of surprises me. Alas, we never really did get a handle on when we were supposed to harvest it. Rick thought we needed to take it out of the ground before the first frost. Since it’s usually in season in the late winter, I thought we should let it go a while. Rick won. He wanted the space for something else.

So, I got only enough celery root to make mashed celery root. I will have to buy celery root for my fries later this winter.

I also got one of the three leeks that grew in the garden (I’m not sure if Rick just didn’t plant more or if only three survived). Rick was off hunting, so I took my opportunity to make a Susan dinner—mashed celery root with sauteed leeks and mushrooms. (I sauted the mushrooms and leeks in a little butter and red wine.) I was in absolute heaven eating it!

I make two versions of mashed celery root: dairy and dairy-free. For this meal I made dairy-free, mostly because I didn’t have any cream on hand. To be honest, I really can’t tell the difference between the two. The celery root has such a strong flavor, it overpowers the other flavors. And it’s plenty creamy with olive oil alone.

If you’ve grown celery root, I’d love to hear how long you left it in the ground…we’re very curious here.

Have I mentioned how much I love celery root? Mushrooms are a very close second too. This dinner was heaven.

Recipe: Mashed Celery Root

Summary: a creamy comfort food to substitute with potatoes

Ingredients

2 large celery root bulbs

1/4 cup olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Bring a pot of water to a boil.

While the water boils, peel the celery root (I usually cut off the skin with my knife) and cut into chunks.

Boil for about 20 minutes, or until tender.

Drain off the water and transfer the celery root to a food processor (using your S blade).

Add about half of the olive oil and process. Add more olive oil as need to get the consistency you want.

Process until creamy (this can take up to 5 minutes). Add salt and pepper and serve.